Hidden Talents
by marihun
Summary: Just when Agent Peter Burke thinks he knows almost everything about Neal Caffrey, the conman proves he's still full of surprises.


**Author's note:** Well, this is my first published fanfic. It's a one-shot, at least for now. Who knows, perhaps in the future some of Neal's other hidden talents will be revealed as well…

Many thanks to my wonderful betas, Lady Black-Malfoy and AwesomeQueenoftheLab for their immense help, they're both awesome writers and fellow members of the „Neal Caffrey is Bryce Larkin undercover"-gang :D

Reviews are welcome and appreciated.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own any of the characters (although I sure wish I did!)

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**Hidden Talents**

'How in the hell did we get in this situation?' Peter asked himself. He definitely wasn't used to being in the position he was currently in – tied to a chair in an abandoned warehouse. He looked to his left, only to find Neal right next to him, looking slightly dazed and tied to another chair. There was a third chair on Neal's other side, occupied by an unconscious blonde woman tied up just like Peter and Neal. The five thugs who captured Peter and Neal were all gathered around a table in the far end of the warehouse, far enough away that Peter couldn't make out what they were talking about.

In his head, Peter replayed the events that led them to their current predicament. It all started out so simple. He and Neal were following the trail of a stolen painting to the warehouse when members of the gang surprised them from behind and knocked them out. They panicked when they found out their captives were FBI, but instead of escaping while they had the chance, they decided to take Peter and Neal as hostages – a pretty stupid move, in Peter's opinion.

Once again, he attempted to throw himself at the ropes holding him, hoping maybe his attempts would snap them. Next to him, Neal sat stock still, shooting worried looks in the direction of the woman who was slowly coming to. She blinked a couple of times to clear her sight, and her eyes widened in shock when she noticed Neal and Peter staring at her. According to what Peter gathered from the thugs' conversation earlier, she was the secretary of some German billionaire named Lichtenstein, who was supposed to do business with the men's boss but changed his mind at the last minute. In an act of revenge, the men kidnapped his secretary to force him to get back into business with them.

One of the thugs in the back turned around, and when he saw that the woman was conscious, he slowly walked over to them. Pulling a phone out of his pocket, he stopped in front of the woman, who was slightly struggling to get out of the ropes.

"You're gonna tell your boss to pay up really fast if he wants to see you again," he said while dialing a number. Peter and Neal exchanged glances before looking back at the huge man, who didn't pay any attention to them.

"There's no point, Mr. Lichtenstein's not going to pay you!" the woman pleaded. She looked like she was scared to death, and about to cry. Peter, who had a problem with handling crying women, mentally pleaded for her to be stronger than she currently looked.

"You think you're not worth a couple million to him?" the man snarled.

"You don't understand!" she shrieked. "I'm just his assistant. I don't mean anything to him! He probably already replaced me with someone else from Personnel!" By now the woman was in tears. Peter couldn't help but raise his eyes to the ceiling in frustration. The woman continued, more to herself than to her captor, "Probably with Jill... she's been after my job from day one–"

"Really?" The thug cut off her tirade, while Neal gave her a partially incredulous, partially amused look. "Well then, too bad for you. But don't worry, if he really doesn't want to pay then I'm sure we'll find some use for you..." he trailed off with an evil grin on his face. Then he lifted the phone to his ear, waiting for the other end to pick up. Peter had his attention on the thug, who turned his back on the captives, so he completely missed the exchange of glances and the wordless communication between Neal and the woman. Oddly, she suddenly looked completely calm and in control. His attention was only drawn back to the woman when he caught movement out of the corner of his eye. She sprang up from her seat and kicked the man in the back, sending him almost flying across the room.

For the few next moments, Peter felt like he had a front row seat in a movie theater playing a 3D kung-fu movie. As soon as they saw what happened to their companion, the rest of the thugs started to run towards Peter and Neal. However, by the time they got close, Neal had inexplicably freed himself and jumped up from his chair as well. Peter's jaw dropped as he watched Neal take on one of the newly arrived thugs with expert martial arts moves. What was even more fascinating was that Neal's moves seemed to be perfectly synchronized with those of the woman, who had – after knocking out the man with the phone – moved on to fight the rest of the gang members. It was almost like watching a beautifully choreographed dance.

It didn't last too long. In less than a minute, all five men were lying unconscious on the floor, while Neal and the woman were catching their breath. Before Peter could say anything, Neal quickly moved behind him and cut his ropes. As Peter was rubbing his wrists, trying to get the blood circulation moving again, Neal stepped over to the woman. She was looking at him expectantly, and he handed her a throwing knife that had somehow appeared in his hand.

The woman took the knife, and–raising her skirt slightly–placed it next to two similar knives in the sheath that was strapped to her thigh. Then, without a word, she turned her back on the stunned FBI agent and started in the direction of the warehouse's exit. Neal gave an appreciative smile to her retreating back. Peter was speechless.

"What..." he finally said, trying to find his voice. "What was that?"

"Shouldn't you be calling the cavalry?" Neal asked, evading the answer.

"Yeah, I think I should..." Peter said, confused. "But... since when do you know kung-fu?"

"What can I say," Neal grinned, trying to look as innocent as possible. "I have many hidden talents."


End file.
